by Lorenzo Rossi
The number of Catholics in the world continues to increase, with a growth of 1.15% between 2022 and 2023, higher than that of the world population (+0.9%). This is what emerges from the official data released on Thursday 20 March 2025 through thePontifical Annuario and theAnnuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae 2023official tools of the Holy See to photograph the state of the Catholic Church in the world.
The total number of Catholics passed by 1.39 billion to 1.406 billion of faithful. Significant growth, which highlights a vitality of global Catholicism, albeit with very different dynamics depending on the continents.
Africa, growth engine
It is theAfrica to tow the increase, with a growth of 3,31% in just one year. Catholics in the African continent have passed to 281 millionnine million more than 2022. Among the African countries, the Democratic Republic of the Congo guide by number of baptized (55 million), followed by Nigeria (35 million), Uganda, Tanzania And Kenya.
On the contrary, theEurope It is the continent that records the most modest growth: only +0.2%. The data of Oceania (+1.9%), Asia (+0.6%) And America (+0.9%)the latter continent that hosts Almost half of the Catholics of the world (47.8%), of which more than half in South America.
Priestly vocations fall, deacons grow
The new annualio also highlights the continuous erosion of the priestly vocationswith a decrease in the number of priests in almost all continents, with the exception ofAfrica (+2.7%) and of theAsia (+1.6%). The global number of priests in 2023 is equal to 406,996.
In Europewhere it still focuses almost 40% of the world clergythe trend is downhill: –1.6%after a drop in –1.7% the previous year. Also Oceania (–1%) And America (-0.7%) They record drops, albeit more content.
THE seminarians are decreased on a global scale (–1.8%), with the only exception of theAfrica which records a slight increase (+1.1%). The drop is particularly marked in Europe (-4.9%) and in Asia (-4.2%)confirming a negative trend that continues from 2012.
Religious and religious: only Africa in contrast
Even among the Professor religious and the religious professesthe trend is downward. Only theAfrica is confirmed in contrast, with an increase in the +2.2% For religious.
According to what reported by Vatican News“The decrease in the number of professes (…) is widely attributable to a considerable growth of deaths, due to a strong presence of elderly religious, while the number of abandonments of religious life has dropped in the period 2022-2023”.
Permanent deacons grow
The only figure in clear contrast concerns the permanent deaconsincreased by 2.6% In a year: from 50,150 in 2022 to 51,433 in 2023. Most are found in North America (39%)followed byEurope (31%). THE’Africaunlike the total trend of the continent, records a mild drop of the number of deacons.
On average, in the world there are 13 deacons per 100 priestsbut in Asia They are counted only 0.5 Diaconi per 100 priestswhile in Africa The relationship is of 1 out of 100.
Catholics in the world: almost half live in the Americas
The American continent The main Catholic basin remains: the 27.4% of the faithful live in South AmericaThe 13.8% in Central America and the 6.6% in North America.
Follow Europe (20.4%) And Africa (20%)two continents which, according to the projections, are destined to cross their respective curves in the coming years. Despite Asia is the most populous continent on the planet, only 11% of the Catholic baptized He lives there.
